Undergarment



Oct. 10, 1950 2,525,170

B. EHRLICH UNDERGARMENT Filed Aug. 25, 1948 iiiiifi 21 23 INVENTOR.

BY I

ATTORNEX.

, Z A 'BfRTH/I 511mm.

Patented Oct. 10, 1950 UNITED STATES TENT OFFICE This invention relates to undergarmentasuch as are commonly worn by all infants and by adult females, and which are commonly referred to as panties. V

Undergarments of this 'characternow commonly in use, are composed of several members,

which are joined together by sewing or by the use of buttons. The disadvantage of such construction lies in the fact thatse'ams frequently become disengaged, that buttons are frequently torn off, and that stitching at times hurts "the tender skin of babies. Furthermore such garments as are now in common use make no provision for a moisture-proof layer ll.

With this in view, it is the principal object of the present invention toprovide an undergarment of this character, which is made of a unitary piece of material, and which does not rely upon sewing to complete the garment.

It is a further object of this invention to provide an undergarment, the body of which is composed of a unitary piece of material, and which does not require buttons to maintain it about the body of a wearer. 7

And it is a still further object of the present invention to provide an undergarment of this character, the body of which is composed of a unitary piece of material, and which has inserted therein a moisture-proof intersection.

And yet another advantage of the present i hvention resides in the provision of an undergarment of this character, which may be secured about the body-of a wearer by a plurality of straps adapted to be formed into bows.

And a still further purpose of the present invention lies in the provision of an undergarment of this character which, when secured about the abdomen of a wearer, will be so arranged, that draft and other undesirable air currents will not penetrate.

And a still further aim of the present invention resides in the provision of an undergarment of this character, which may be maintained about the waist of a wearer by the use of one or more slide fasteners.

These and other meritorious aims and advantages, which will become more fully apparent as the description hereof proceeds, are achieved by the novel construction and arrangement of simple parts, hereinafter described, and illustrated in the accompanying drawing, forming a material component of the present disclosure, and in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of an under- 1 Claim. 01. 2 -224) 'arrnent of the present construction, worn "by a child.

Figure 2 is a front 'elevational view of the garment illustrated in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a plan view of the garment, showing its construction from a unitary piece of materi'al.

Figure 4 is a front elevational view of a modified form of the present invention.

Figure 5 is a partial plan View of the undergarment illustrated in Figure 4, in an open position.

Figure 6 is a sectional view of the garment, the section being taken on line 6-6 of Figure 2.

Figure '7 is a sectional view of the modification, the section being taken on line ll of Figure 4.

Referring in greater detail to the drawing, the numeral 10 designates in general child,wearing an undergarment of the present construction, the undergarment being broadly referred to by the reference numeral l I.

The undergarment H is made from a unitary piece of material l2, such as cloth 'or any other desirable and suitable material, the contour of the unitary piece of material being such that, when the garment is worn, it will have the shape andappearance of a conventional pair of panties.

The upper and lower horizontal edges are each provided with a strip of elastic material, respectively referred to by the numerals l3 and i l, the elastic strips being retained in their respective places by the formation of loops at the edges of the material, in which loops the elastic strips maybe retained.

Centrally of the cloth l2 and spaced from the outer edges thereof are a pair of spaced-apart openings l5 and IS in which the legs of a wearer may be entered. The space between the openings, referred to by the numeral ll, will constitute the crotch, when the garment is worn. Centrally of its length, each vertical edge of the material I2 is provided with a cut-out I8, the vertical edges being referred to by the numeral I9. The purpose 01' these cut-outs will become more fully apparent as the description hereof proceeds.

A plurality of straps of cloth or of any other suitable and desirable material are secured in spaced relation to each other adjacent the longitudinal edges of the material. Straps 20, which are spacedly secured to the upper half of the longitudinal edges of the material l2, as at 2|, are preferably shorter than straps 22 which are secured in spaced relation along the lower longitudinal edges of the material l2, as at 23, although straps 22 may be longer and straps 20 shorter if desired. Straps or strings 20 and 22 may be fastened to material l2 by stitching or in any other suitable and desirable manner. The portions of material between the inner edges of cut-outs l8 and the longitudinal edges of the material I2 will overlap when the garment is worn, as will be further explained as the description hereof proceeds. Stitching as indicated at ST may be provided about the periphery of leg openings [5 and I6 and at any other suitable and desirable place on the garment.

The garment indicated in Figures 4, 5 and 7 is a modified form of the present invention, and is adapted for use by adult females preferably, its particular advantage being in the provision of a moisture-proof crotch portion.

This garment is also made of a unitary piece of material [2, of such contour that, when it is worn, it will have the shape of a conventional pair of panties. The upper and lower horizontal edges are each provided with a strip of elastic or other suitable material, by means of which it will be retained about the waist of a wearer.

Centrally located on material l2 and spaced from the outer vertical edges are a pair of leg openings l5 and [6 respectively. A pair of cutouts I8 are provided, at the center of material l2, extending inwardly from the outer edges thereof, as is shown in the drawing.

The section of material between leg openings [5 and I6, which when the garment is worn constitutes the crotch, is cut out, and inserted into the opening thus created and retained there by stitching or otherwise, is a portion of moistureproof material, as at Ila, the material being identified by the numeral 36.

The vertical edges of materia1 l2, between cutouts l8 and elastic M are each provided with a slide-fastener 25, the lower vertical edges also being provided with slide fastener 25, which are associated with conventional slides 26, having the conventional slide fastener flaps 28. Stitching, as at ST may. be provided about the leg openings as well as at other desirable and suitable places.

The use of the deviceis as follows. When the garment illustrated in Figure 2 is to be worn, the childs legs are entered in leg openings I5 and I6, and the garment is secured about the body by :forming the straps into bows, the elastic bands aiding in retaining the garment about the waist 'of the child. It will be found that material section 24 will overlap the material section on the opposite side of the garment, so that it will be 4 draft-proof. The exact position of strings 20 and 22 or their respective lengths may vary as demanded. Slide fasteners may also be used in place of the strings, if desired.

The garment illustrated in Figure 4 is used in the same manner except that, instead of strings, slide fasteners are here employed. Obviously, strap retaining means may be used instead of slide fasteners, and in the garment illustrated in Figure 2, slide-fasteners may be used instead of straps, or a slide fastener may be used on one side and strap on the other side.

Thus there has been described, a highly efficient undergarment in the best known forms of its embodiment, but it is to be understood that this disclosure is to be regarded as illustrative and. descriptive only of the best known forms of the invention, and not as restrictive or limitative to the exact details known, applicant reserving the right to make such changes and modifications in the construction of this invention, as may come within the meaning of the appended claim, without thereby departing either from the spirit or the scope of the present invention.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to secure by Letters Patent, is:

In an undergarment composed of a unitary piece of material substantially rectangular in cross-section, and having a pair of spaced-apart leg openings centrally thereof forming a crotch section therebetween, a plurality of strings secured to said material along its vertical edges, the strings adjacent the upper half of said material being shorter than the strings adjacent the lower half of said material, two semi-circular cutouts, one of said cut-outs extending inwardly centrally of each vertical edge of said material, said cut-outs permitting the overlapping of said material at both vertical edges when the garment is placed into position about the body of a wearer.

BERTHA EHRLICH.

REFERE CES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,120,985 Trainor Dec. 15, 1914 1,865,541 Reynolds July 5, 1932 2,101,453 Rhodes Dec. 7, 1937 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 257,005 Germany Feb. 24, 1913 

